# Televised Torture French Documentary Looks Into Television's Power Over People By Ryan Hinkson | Published 2010-03-21 | Unique Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/televised-torture References: [telegraph](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/7488732/Would-you-torture-this-man.html) & [telegraph](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturevideo/tvandradiovideo/7463158/Contestants-electrocute-each-other-on-Game-of-Death-TV-show.html) I once told a friend that [reality TV](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/tinder-5) is so crazy that I would not be surprised if one day there is a show about people being killed on air. That day has come--sort of. 'The Game of Death' was a staged reality quiz show that instructed participants to give near-lethal jolts of electricity to a man strapped to a chair for every wrong answer he gave. Thankfully, the show was a fake. It was the basis for [a documentary](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/my-friend-max-hate) examining how much people trust [television](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/1-tv), the idea being that people would electrocute the contestant because if something is on TV then it must be okay. Scary stuff. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 3.8/10 - Popularity: 17% | Activity: 89% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 70% men, 30% women - Primary generations: Millennial - Top markets: North America, Europe ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Unique](https://www.trendhunter.com/unique) > [Bizarre](https://www.trendhunter.com/bizarre) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Reality TV:** Explore innovative ways to push the boundaries of reality TV programming without crossing ethical lines. - **Trust in Television:** Develop strategies to rebuild trust in television programming and ensure responsible content creation. - **Ethical Boundaries:** Address the ethical concerns surrounding televised entertainment to avoid potential harm to participants. ### Who This Affects Most - **Television Production:** Leverage technology and storytelling to create engaging and responsible television content. - **Documentary Filmmaking:** Produce compelling documentaries that challenge societal norms and provoke meaningful discussions. - **Psychology and Media Studies:** Conduct research to understand the psychological impact of television on viewers and develop guidelines for responsible programming. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [First-Person Television-Inspired Games](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/not-for-broadcast.md) - [Immersive Virtual Television Experiences](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/future-of-tv.md) - [Journalist-Focused Short Films](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-shooting.md) - [Fan-Powered Reality Competitions](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/pretzel-crust-island.md) - [Multisensory Television Screens](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/taste-the-tv.md) - [Immersive Horror Games](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/eyes-never-wake.md) - [QSR Game Shows](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/qsr-game-show.md) - [Streaming Platform Dining Experiences](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/tv-dinner-popup.md) - [Guided Challenge Party Games](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/human-controller.md)